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  1. #1
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    NS TR: Riding my motorcycle to every Major League Ballpark

    Is this the place for non-skiing TRs? Feel free to move it if appropriate.

    So in late May I left my home in Portland, OR to go on a two-month motorcycle trip to see a game in every single Major League ballpark. I’ve been dreaming/planning this trip for the last five years, and finally my wife told me to just do it this summer so it’s out of my system. I think she’s so sick of hearing about it that anything is preferable to me not going, lol.

    The stats work out like this:

    30 ballparks
    58 days
    13,000+ miles

    I also started a little YouTube channel to post videos from the trip.


    Anyway, I had to sort out a new bike, because my old 2014 Versus wasn’t going to be up to the task. I found a new Honda Africa Twin about three weeks before my departure date, and I snagged it



    Stoked.


    I put about 800 miles on the bike before I left, including a couple of 2-300 mile shakedown rides.


    The biggest issue I had was trying to get some luggage for the bike. I thought I had a line on some, but that fell through, and the only things I could get in time for my trip were going to be $2500 full on adventure luggage, which was just too much money, and very overkill for what I’m doing. In the end I opted to strap a couple of duffels to the passenger seat and I installed a small top case for a little lockable storage.




    All set for departure!

    Day one dawned bright and early. My first game is at Oracle Park in San Francisco, so I head south down I5. The first couple of weeks while I'm out West are unfortunately going to have a lot of freeway miles just due to the huge distances I have to travel in short amounts of time. I'm looking forward to getting to the east coast and having the freedom to take some twisty roads along the way.

    I5 into California isn't too bad, though, and at about mile 350 I officially had ridden further than I ever have in a day.



    Day one for me ends in Redding after 423 miles of riding over about 8 hours.

  2. #2
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    Day 2: Redding to Berkeley

    My sister lives in the East Bay, so I took a quick and easy day down I5 to 505 to 80. The only challenge was the red flag warning for that part of California that brought 95 degree temps and 30 mph winds.


    My wife made me promise to keep my windshield clean, so I gave it a wash. I don't think I've washed it since....



    First bridge crossing of the trip.

    Spent the evening meeting my new nephew and hanging with some family.
    Total miles: 206

    Day 3:
    No riding today, but my first game. Took BART into SF from the East Bay, and then walked down the Embarcadero to Oracle Park for a 12:30 pm first pitch.



    Watched a good game, and caught my first ever ball. A good omen for the trip, I think...


    The video for this ballpark is up as well.

  3. #3
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    ....following...

    Crazy idea makes for great trip report.

  4. #4
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    Day 4:
    Today was an easy day. I left my sister's house in the East Bay and did a quick 21 mile jaunt down to Oakland. Staying south of the Bay Bridge for this night was really just to save myself a bunch of time the next morning trying to get south, but it did put me much closer to that day's game at the RingCentral Coliseum.


    Great views of the Bay from up here.


    The first moment I started to consider lane splitting..... errrr..... filtering. I wasn't brave enough yet, but soon.

    The game at the Coliseum was ok, but man that place is a dump. It has the vibe of a going out of business mattress store. Nothing is open, nobody wants to be there, and everything feels sad.

    Had a ball drop about six inches from my reach at this one, too. Should have brought my glove! Haha.

    Here's the video from the Coliseum:


    Day 5:
    I had two days to get down to San Diego, so I hopped on the 101 and started heading south. Got through San Jose without too much rush hour fuss, and then got into some nice riding and cool weather.

    Last look at the Bay


    One of the last times I'd be hunting the sun to warm up at a gas stop


    One of my favorite photographers has his gallery in Pismo Beach, which was also a convenient time to stop for lunch, so that made it a no brainer. https://www.chrisburkard.com/


    I've been to Southern California three times over the last couple of years, and it's always looked like this. I thought it was sunny and warm! "May gray" is apparently a thing with the marine layer.

    Ended the night in a town called Camarillo (I think), just between Ventura and LA. My hotel was next to an iMax theater, and it happened to be the opening night of the new Top Gun movie, so after dinner I bought myself a ticket to the danger zone.

    Total miles: 356

    Up next is three games in three days in SoCal

  5. #5
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    YES! Nice to see these in one place, following.
    j'ai des grands instants de lucididididididididi

  6. #6
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    Day 6:

    I left Camarillo with the goal of getting to SD for a game at PetCo Park. It was only about 175 miles, so I figured on three or four hours maximum to shoot down the 101. Boy was I wrong. In retrospect, picking a schedule that had me driving from Disneyland, to SeaWorld, and back to Disneyland, on Memorial Day weekend was maybe a mistake. I hit stop and go traffic about 20 miles south of LA and it didn't let up.



    I sat there watching probably 50 motorcycles blow by me by lane splitting.... errr.... filtering, and eventually I just said screw it and followed someone who looked like they knew what they were doing. It actually wasn't too bad! I'm glad I didn't have big panniers on the bike, but drivers knew to look for bikes in between lanes, and there was plenty of room. I think I easily saved an hour or two by doing that.


    All in all it was somewhere between 5 and 6 hours to get down there. So much for sight seeing before the game. I did have time for some fish tacos, though. Priorities!


    PetCo is a great park, and of course they have puppies on the field, so double bonus.


    There was a huge crowd, good energy, and fireworks after the game. I will be back here again. One night was not enough.


    The next day I needed to get back up to Anaheim to see the Angels play. With my new found powers of filtering, the drive was pretty quick, and I got into Anaheim with no issues. Had enough time to stop at the brewery across the street for a quick lunch. This was the kids' sandwich. Lol.


    Angel Stadium is great, and it was a perfect day for a game. Saw Ohtani hit two homeruns, which was cool as well!


    Towards the afternoon things started to take a turn for the worse, though. What I thought was just some bad allergies the day before turned into a full-blown sickness. I was sure it was COVID, but two tests a day apart were both negative, so it must have just been some other bug. I was totally sacked out by 5 pm, and just bought a cup-o-soup from the hotel for dinner.

    The next day I was somehow feeling even worse. Luckily all I had to do was get myself from Anaheim to Downtown LA for the Dodgers game. I did manage to get up to see the Hollywood sign which was very cool, and I managed to spend about half an hour walking around DTLA before I had to go rest before the game.



    Dodger Stadium is so cool, and it was such a bummer to not get to really enjoy it. I toughed out five innings, and then had to call it. Luckily I got to see Mookie Betts hit a home run! So worth staying as long as I did.




    At this point I was really nervous about the next day because I needed to get 400 miles across the desert to Scottsdale, AZ to see the Diamondbacks play. With forecasts of triple digit heat, and not even having the energy to walk around I went to bed with little confidence about the day ahead of me

  7. #7
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    This is awesome!

  8. #8
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    FWIW I've spent lots of time in SoCal and NorCal traffic and lane splitters never bothered me.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by I Skied Bandini Mountain View Post
    This is awesome!
    Quote Originally Posted by ex-powderbroker View Post
    YES! Nice to see these in one place, following.
    Quote Originally Posted by mescalito View Post
    ....following...

    Crazy idea makes for great trip report.
    Thanks all. A bit of a dump here today, and then I will hopefully get through the whole thing in the next week or so as I have time to write.

    Videos from SoCal:





  10. #10
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    I woke up the next day feeling very slightly better, and I really had no option but to just get on the bike and see what happens. Weather looked good, but I was definitely going to see some heat finally. After weeks of cold temps on the west coast, I was definitely ready for a change.

    Today was sort of a whiplash on the temps though. At one point in the ride I saw 108*

    You can really start to see the landscape change, though.


    This ride was one of those where everything starts to go wrong. My comms unit died about halfway through the ride, then my headphones died an hour before I got to Scottsdale. Anything that had a sticky mount just fell off my helmet. Gopro mount, the comms unit mount, the speakers and mic inside the helmet. The heat wrecked everything.



    Once it became apparent that the heat, and not my sickness, was going to be the worst part of the day, my mood strangely improved. Heat I can deal with. Overall it was a long, hot, fairly boring day, but I rolled into Scottsdale on schedule, so that was a big win.

    Luckily my dad and his partner live in Scottsdale, so I got to stay with them. I decided to take a couple of extra days in AZ to get better. We did manage to sneak in the Diamondbacks game.



    You can rent this suite that has a pool in it.




    The next couple of days were spent just lounging by the pool and working on the schedule.


    At this point I had to decide if I wanted to go north to Colorado, or stay south and do the Texas and Florida ball clubs. The southern route is faster, and fewer miles, but it has me doing about 8 or 10 pretty big days all in a row, and that was hard to commit to with my current state.

    After looking it all over I decided I was going to Colorado, with a final call the next day after a final weather check.


    After two days I was feeling significantly better, and decided it was time to get moving again. A final check of my route from Scottsdale to Colorado took me through the Santa Fe area (somewhere I've wanted to visit for a long time), but there were tons of road closures in the area due to a massive forest fire. The roads on my route looked clear, but it didn't seem like it was worth the risk of running into newly closed roads, OR driving through heavy smoke for a couple of days. So for the second time in three days, my trip schedule got thrown in the trash. The new plan: get to Texas and reevaluate. That means, about 1,000 miles to Dallas.

    I left early the next morning, and headed into the hills. The drive out of Scottsdale and into NM was so much more fun and interesting than anything I'd ridden yet on this trip.



    This part of AZ reminds me of Central Oregon, which is one of my favorite places in the world.



    In my rush to get out in the morning I didn't eat breakfast, so I knew I needed to eat. A billboard said Pie Town was ahead, and that seemed like a sign.


    I met a lady here who was an EMS/Firefighter, and also the local snake expert. She was explaining all of the different types of snakes and bites to those of us in the restaurant which was very fascinating. The pie hit the spot, too.


    Leaving Pie Town I crossed the continental divide. I know it's just a geological line, but something about it signaled a milestone in the trip to me.

    Here is my only small rant about the Africa Twin. I have absolutely LOVED having CarPlay on the bike. The mapping, accesses to music and podcasts, being able to easily voice-to-text, it's all been a game changer for me. BUT, the biggest issue with it is that for some reason you have to have a bluetooth comms unit connected for it to work. Leaving Pie Town something happened to my comms unit, and I couldn't get it to reconnect, so all of my maps turned off while I was driving down the road. Super frustrating to have to pull over and deal with it.

    Ok rant over, and back on the road. Once past Pie Town, the rest of the day was just dead straight and flat. Mind numbing, really. Just a preview of what was to come in Texas I guess...

    I did see the Very Large Array telescope (if you've seen the movie Contact, that's the telescope they were using), which was very cool! I didn't realize I was going to pass it.


    My goal for the night was Roswell, and about two hours out I ran into a storm that was nipping at my heals the whole way in.



    I pulled over real quick to look at the radar, and decide a plan of action, and the best plan seemed to be to haul a.... errr butt.... and get to Roswell.

    We're not in Kansas anymore Toto.


    This is the storm I was running from. It slammed into town with a fury about 20 minutes after I got in.


    Decided to skip wandering around town and just ordered in a pizza.

    Total miles: 532. The longest day I'd ever done on a motorcycle before.

  11. #11
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    The next morning I woke up to sunny skies, but also the realization that the lightweight/packable bike cover I brought with me wasn't actually waterproof. Doh. Nothing like starting the day with a wet butt, haha.

    I had a little over 480 miles to Dallas, and the was the goal for the day. Nothing much to describe this day other than hot, humid and straight. I think I made about two turns and hit one stop sign the first three hours.


    Welcome to Texas.

    I honestly didn't even film much or take any photos. Total for the day: 487 absolutely uneventful miles.

    The next day was game day. Going to see the Texas Rangers take on the Seattle Mariners.


    Said hello to the Dallas Cowboys as well, while I was here (my duty as a Packers fan).


    My wife reminded me about the loose gun laws in Texas after I sent her this.

    GlobeLife Field was this big, beautiful, new stadium, but it felt sort of lifeless, even with a pretty decent crowd. Felt like all the noise came from the speakers.


    Caught a great game, though, so that was nice.

    So ended day 14. Officially 1/4 of the way done.

    Day 15's goal was to get down to Houston and see an Astros game. The Mariners were headed down there as well, but they rudely didn't offer me a ride on their plane.

    As is the theme with Texas, the ride was uneventful and unremarkable. I'm sure there is good riding in Texas somewhere, but I certainly didn't find it.


    260 miles later I was in Houston, eating a really good burrito for lunch.


    The game tonight was at MinuteMaid Park, and was absolutely 100% different than Globe Life. MinuteMaid is kind of a matchbox, which doesn't really come through on TV. It's a fairly small outfield, and the stands are right on top of the action.


    A fun place to see a game for sure!

    Day 16 dawns and I have three days to get to Kansas City. The original plan was to try and get to St. Petes in two days, but that would force another 1,000 miles in two days, and that felt too aggressive. Any small thing that had gone wrong could have jeopardized the whole trip. If it went well it would have made the rest of the trip easier, but didn't feel like it was worth it. One of the rules for the trip schedule was to never force myself to do more than 400 miles in a day. If I was feeling good, and could go longer, then I definitely do, but I never want to have to push past where I'm comfortable on any given day.

    One of the hard parts about this trip is the reality of the MLB schedule. If you can get to a city when the team is home, you can basically pick your date and time to see a game, but if you miss it by a day, it could be two weeks before they are back again. Florida and Texas are particularly hard because they are so far away from anywhere else, so you can't just pop back over another time. If I miss one of the teams, it could legitimately make the trip impossible to complete in the time I have. So, with all of that, the more conservative, but longer, route seemed like the right call here.

    So, back north it was, retracing my route from the previous day, and continuing on north towards Kansas. The best part of my day was discovering a place called Buckees. I think it's a staple in the south, but was a revelation for someone from the PNW. A wall of hot sauce inside a gas station. I might be in heaven.



    Ended the day in Tulsa. Total miles: 504


    Woke up in Tulsa to this


    And the radar didn't look too promising for my Northern travel.


    I hung out at the hotel as long as reasonable, and tried to time a small gap in the storm bands to get through it. I didn't quite make it.


    Seeing four or five of these strikes right in front of me was a good sign to find the closest gas station and pull over for a bit. My rain gear did really well, but I didn't get the waterproof gloves on in time. The REVIT gloves bleed a bit, apparently.



    Hung out for about 20 minutes or so for the worst of it to pass, and raced north once again. Amazingly, this is the last time I would don the rain gear for the rest of the trip.



    Got into Kansas, and the weather was beautiful. I have family that is from Lawrence, and had an extra day to kill, so I stayed there for the night. Took the short day as time to do some laundry, and give the bike a bath.



    Visited Allen Fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Kansas to take a picture of a commemorative brick on the patio here.

    Did a couple of other little things, then on to Kansas City.

    On the bike I had this cheapo seat cover I bought off of Amazon, and it was just not cutting it. I could barely sit for an hour at a time on the bike, so I found a Cycle Gear on my way into KC, and bought a Wild Ass gel/air seat cover. That thing is probably the best money I spent on this whole trip. Not sure I'd have made it without it.

  12. #12
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    I got into KC with some time to spare. My hotel was right across the street from Kauffman Stadium, which was cool. Took the bike over for some pictures


    This stadium is a little nostalgic for me. It was one of the first places I ever saw a big league game when I was a kid. My dad took me out to Kansas from Utah and we took Arthur Bryant's into the stadium to eat while we watched batting practice. It was Royals/White Sox in the early 90's so I got to see Bo Jackson, George Brett, and Frank Thomas all in one place. I haven't been back since, so it was pretty special.

    I then went to go see another really special place: the Negro Leagues Museum. If you are in KC, and interested in baseball at all, I highly recommend it. It's very interesting and very powerful.


    Afterwards, it was lunch time, and guess what was a five minute walk from the museum?


    I'm not really going to get into the BBQ debates, because I frankly don't really care, but for me, this is one of the best around.

    I met my uncle and cousin for a quick little tailgate, then it was game time.



    It turned out that it was Pride Night at the game, and I think these types of things are really fun. Great way to bring more people to the stadium, and have some fun events.


    Just an absolutely gorgeous night for a game.


    Only had the one afternoon in KC, which was a bummer, but ever onward.

    The drive from KC to St. Louis was uneventful. I really just shot down the Interstate for a couple of hours. This was I think the low point of the trip. For whatever reason, all I wanted to do was to turn around and go home. Maybe it was the idea of crossing the Mississippi over the east coast, or maybe just some road fatigue catching up to me. I was starting to have some doubts whether I could get this done. I spent the afternoon in my hotel room just trying to get my life together a bit, and sort of half-heartedly made my way to downtown StL for the game.

    On a side note, this should be illegal


    The view from outside this Hooters is better than the view inside the Hooters.


    Obligatory selfie


    Busch Stadium was really cool. One of the better views of any ballpark, and it was packed. A sellout crowd for this game, as well as Pride Night again, which meant $5 Busch Lights up until first pitch. Can't complain about that!


    After the game I had a long call with my wife talking through everything, and she did a great job just reassuring me that I could make it, and that I would never forgive myself for not pushing on. I think I just needed a little encouragement, and woke up the next day feeling a lot better.

    The next stage of my trip was going to be a big one. I had to get from St. Louis to Philly, where I would start a stretch of six games in six days, and 10 games in 12 days. I had three days on the schedule to get to Philly, but I knew I wanted to get there in two so I could have a day off the bike before this long stretch.

    Day 20 dawned, and I immediately crossed the Mississippi River, starting the Eastern phase of the trip. I wouldn't see the mighty Mississippi again for a month.


    Made my way through Illinois, Indiana, and a good chunk of Ohio for a total of 521 miles. I always forget how flat the midwest is.


    After a quick night in Cambridge, OH, I was back on the road cruising through the eastern parts of Ohio, a quick jaunt into WV, and finally into PA. Western PA is quite the place, and I finally got to see something other than flat, straight roads since I left New Mexico.


    Look how flat that rear tire is looking.....


    Got into Philly after another 407 miles, and had the evening to bum around. In a case of "It's a small world," I ran into an old friend from Oregon, who has since moved to Tennessee literally AT the Liberty Bell. We were both looking at it at the same time. Wild.


    This is where they filmed part of the movie National Treasure (and maybe another few other things have happened here over the years, too).

  13. #13
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    I had the whole day in Philly before the game, so after doing laundry for a bit in the morning, I headed out to explore a bit more.

    First stop was the RevZilla HQ store. I had to go check out where I spend all of my money.


    I chatted with the dudes there for a bit, and miraculously got out of there for just the cost of some visor cleaner. Sometimes not having room for literally anything else is a blessing. Next stop was something I've been looking forward to a week. A good ol' fashioned cheesesteak. Wiz wit for those interested.


    And I was right next to the stadium so I had to grab a pic of the bike next to it. That wasn't very feasible for me for so many of the stadiums, so I tried to get as many as I could.


    I absolutely love Philly. If I had to move back to the East Coast, I think it would be here.

    Game time rolled around, and Citizen's Bank Park did not disappoint.


    In maybe the most Philly thing ever, they have seats that face directly into the opposing bullpen. You can't even really see the field from them.


    Saw a walk off hit for the Phils rounding out a great day.


    The next morning we left bright and early to go to Boston for game two of our six games in six days adventure here. I made the mistake of just punching in the destination into my Google Maps and taking the suggested route, which for some reason routed my directly through Manhattan. Not only did I sit in two hours of traffic, it also cost me like $30 in tolls. I definitely took the L on that one. As meticulous and detailed I was for the schedule, I have been the opposite on the route planning.


    Hotels in Boston were at a minimum $400 a night, so I had to stay a bit out of town. It turned out to be a really nice place, right on the water, so that was a happy accident.


    Up next, the best, most iconic ballpark of all time: Fenway Park.
    Last edited by Supermoon; 07-28-2022 at 01:38 PM.

  14. #14
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    Fantastic, love an old fashion trip report. Strong work and bless our wives who put up with us

  15. #15
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    Awesome trip!

    And yeah, lane splitting in CA is the bomb. I was hesitant at first on the freeway but when you think about it, it's actually safer than riding on side streets since there's no where for anyone to change lanes to when it's bumper to bumper, and if you don't go crazy it's a safe speed differential with other vehicles.

  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by evdog View Post
    Awesome trip!

    And yeah, lane splitting in CA is the bomb. I was hesitant at first on the freeway but when you think about it, it's actually safer than riding on side streets since there's no where for anyone to change lanes to when it's bumper to bumper, and if you don't go crazy it's a safe speed differential with other vehicles.
    Yeah. It was literally just a mental thing on my end. Logically I knew that and once I did it I didn’t know why it has taken me so long. It’s really the cheat code for California traffic

  17. #17
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    Very cool!

    In college, I worked in a bike shop with a guy who was going to do the same trip -- visit all the major league ballparks -- but by bicycle. He had to cancel fairly early; don't remember why.
    Quote Originally Posted by powder11 View Post
    if you have to resort to taking advice from the nitwits on this forum, then you're doomed.

  18. #18
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    Woah. That’s super ambitious

  19. #19
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    Nice, nice, noice!

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  21. #21
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    Awesome TR!

    This is one of my dream trips in retirement but would do it in a car and probably take longer. After spending 20 years in the military, I have friends in almost every big league town (or close by) so could definitely shave some budget bucks on lodging.

    My brother offered me his custom Sprinter for this but I think I'd rather have a smaller car that's more comfortable to drive, especially in bad traffic.

    After getting hit by a car on my motorcycle in 1985, I haven't gotten on one again but it seems like a great way to do this solo.

    Keep the reports coming!

  22. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by MyNameIsAugustWest View Post
    Awesome TR!

    This is one of my dream trips in retirement but would do it in a car and probably take longer. After spending 20 years in the military, I have friends in almost every big league town (or close by) so could definitely shave some budget bucks on lodging.

    My brother offered me his custom Sprinter for this but I think I'd rather have a smaller car that's more comfortable to drive, especially in bad traffic.

    After getting hit by a car on my motorcycle in 1985, I haven't gotten on one again but it seems like a great way to do this solo.

    Keep the reports coming!
    Yeah, if I had three months instead of two, it would have been so much better. I was constantly fighting the schedule, and never really got to stay and enjoy any of the cities.

    I would do it in an RV if I did it again. One of the big drains for me was constantly packing and repacking every day. It got old fast. It would have been really nice to have my stuff in the same spot all the time.

  23. #23
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    What a wonderful way to spend a summer!
    Go that way really REALLY fast. If something gets in your way, TURN!

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    What is there to say about Fenway other than it's amazing. I am a Red Sox fan, so yes I'm biased, but man, there is something about this place that just oozes baseball history in a way that no other park does.


    Boston Beerworks had this blueberry beer I used to get every time I came to Fenway, but they have since closed. Luckily the bar I went to had one, also, so the tradition continues.


    I had an absolutely amazing night hanging out at Fenway, watching a great game, and talking with a bunch of new people I met.


    I could make an entire thread about this place, but much like this trip, it's time to move on too soon.

    The next morning I woke up a little sluggish and hungover, but I needed to get moving as soon as possible to get down to NYC. For the second day in a row, I got to pay $30 for the privilege of driving through Manhattan.


    I was staying in Queens, but I was headed to the Bronx, so I got a whirlwind tour of the NYC subway system on my way to Yankee Stadium.


    I arrived after about an hour on three different trains.


    I'm really bummed that I didn't get to see the old Yankee Stadium before they built this monstrosity. I walked in, and immediately felt like I was in an airport terminal, complete with its own Hard Rock Cafe.


    While the stadium is a monstrosity, the Yankees fans are great (in their own way). There was definitely a big energy to them, and if I set aside my Red Sox fan biases, it was a nice night for the game.


    I found myself a nice chopped cheese on the way back to Queens and ended what, all-in-all, was a pretty great evening.

    The next morning dawned overcast, and muggy, and I took my rare day off the bike to explore Manhattan a bit. After finding a NYC bagel for breakfast, I hopped on the train to go exploring. I think this is where all the locals hang out, right?


    All jokes aside, Central Park is by far my favorite part of NYC. I have been to NYC probably a dozen times as an adult, and I honestly just don't really like it. I can't explain why. I've visited close friends who lived in the Upper East Side, and done the locals experience, I've come to fancy conferences and stayed in luxury hotels, and I've done trips like this where I've stayed outside of Manhattan and explored other boroughs. Just not for me, I guess.



    I walked up to the Museum of Natural History and checked that out.


    Then finished up with some pizza for an afternoon snack. The pizza place was full of high school kids just out of school, and a bunch of nannies with strollers, so I think that's a good sign.



    I got myself back to Queens, and just had a ten minute walk to Citi Field to see the Mets play the Brewers. Side note: this was Lorenzo Cain's second to last game before he retired right at 10 years of MLB service. I watched him take a one-hop liner right to the crotch playing center field that night, and I wonder if that was the moment he decided to hang it up.


    Another pretty nice night for a game, and I enjoyed Citi Field much more than I liked Yankee Stadium. The crowd was a little more sparse, though.

    Two days in NYC was plenty for me, so I was ready to get back on the road. Next stop, Baltimore for our fifth game in as many days.

    For the third time in four days I went back through Manhattan on my bike, and it was even worse this time. I once again just trusted my maps to get me out of town efficiently, and I honestly don't know why I didn't just go straight south from Queens instead of going north to go south again. By the time the morning coffee hit my brain it was too late and I was stuck in bridge and tunnel traffic. Woof.



    The drive from Queens to Baltimore was very high on the list of most annoying drives of the entire trip. What on paper was a quick jaunt to the south became a hot, frustrating, expensive slog down the NJ turnpike, through Delaware and finally into Maryland. Thankfully today ended my tour of every Turnpike in the northeast.

    I rolled into Baltimore hot, tired, and frustrated. It was a classic mid-Atlantic summer day with 95 degree heat with 95% humidity.


    The view from my hotel window was all time, though.


    I took a cold shower, and headed over to Camden for the game. I got there an hour early, which was fortunate, because I mis-read the time and it was a 6:15 start, not a 7:15 start.


    Camden was a top one on my list that I hadn't been to, and it didn't disappoint. It was absolutely beautiful. A new-ish ballpark with an old-school feel.


    Every time I go to Baltimore I am pleasantly surprised. I really enjoy it in the same way I like Philly. It's a gritty, underrated town with pockets of really great neighborhoods.

    So after Camden Yards I hit the halfway point of the trip, visiting 15 of the 30 ballparks in 26 days, covering 5,784 miles.

  25. #25
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    go man go!

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